Pours a rich, 3.5 finger cream colored head with great retention. Lacing is thick, webbed and layered with excellent stick. Beer is a clear mahogany. Nice looking beer.

Nose is sweet and slightly tart with layers of caramel, brown sugar, and molasses. Aromatic.

Opens sweet and slightly tart with hints of tea leaves, red fruit and a touch of brown sugar. A bit funky with a light bitterness. Coarse towards the end with an odd dried leaf flavor. Aftertaste of light tartness. Odd.

Light bodied with moderate carbonation. Slick and bubbly in the mouth and goes down dry and coarse. Messy finish with a lingering, sticky aftertaste. Average.

I don't know if this beer was intended to be presented this way... but its not good as is. The tea leaf bitterness doesn't work and the tartness just adds to the confusion. I'll pass in the future. (909 characters)

A- Deep red, getting to that brown stage. Head is tanned and about a finger and a half. Light lacing.S- The smell is sweet, to be expected. It is caramelly, and sweet bready, with some complexities that hint at but never really develop into smokiness.T- Same here. The sweetness is on par for the style with some lightly roasted notes as well, but it is pretty much sweet front to back. The caramel is there, but chocolate/smoke/other just wasn't present for me.M- Medium-full body. Smooth, somewhat low carbonation.O- A decent wee heavy, but I didn't find it as complex as some reviewers. A decent drinking beer, but I didn't find it to be outstanding. (657 characters)

It's gotta be me, as I just don't get a lot of flavor out of this. Poured perhaps a bit cold with a modest light tan head that soon settled and some lace. Color is a clear mahogany with some bubble trails. Aroma is very malty, toffee, caramel, hint of smoke, grain. Flavor's kind of bland; not as pronounced as nose, some tang up front, only a suggestion of scotch ale. Body/carbonation are excellent. Finish is like flavor, a slightly nuttiness lingers and that's it. Meh. (473 characters)

I had my eye on this one since it first came out in 2002, but only now did I find a way to purchase one. A good Scotch Ale can be a fine drink in a cool autumn afternoon.Heavy malt character with a fairly prevalent yeast aroma too. Not very sweet. Some caramelization (that does have a diacetyl quality). Earthy aroma goes as warms. Nice tan head and very attractive copper color. Good looking beer. Some lacing.Not as big as I expected, but tasty nonetheless. Nice semi-rich flavors. Has a nutty quality interwoven with some not sweet caramel. Good drying on the finish and the flavor linger nicely. The alcohol intermingles with the early tones nicely. Not high on the sweetness either.Moderate body and even with a fairly big head the carbonation is fortunately tame.For style this is kind of a subtle beer. It doesn't' knock me over with intensity of flavor, rather is requires some searching and effort. . But it is worth it. (935 characters)

I really like Lake Louie beers, but this one is a little different than the rest. Most of their brand is smooth and refreshing. This beer seems a little bit over the top with taste. Don't get me wrong...This is a good beer, but I have had plenty of scotch ales over the years and this one is in the middle of the pack for me. Maybe it was just an off night for me on this one. I like my strong beers, but this scotch ale seemed a little to much taste up front. I was expecting a little more on the back end of the tongue and throat, rather than on the tip of my tongue. All in all, I would get the beer again, but not my first choice for Scotch Ales. (650 characters)

This is my go to beer. Whenever I have been standing staring at the selection at local beer selectorium for too long trying to decide what I would like to take home, I inevitably grab the Warped Speed Scotch Ale. This beer has everything I look for in a beer anytime of year. Fans of IPA's may find it a bit heavy in the summer, but for me it's balance of sweet and bitter is perfect. (384 characters)

Warped Speed Scotch Ale pours a dark golden color, with a nice large head for a scotch ale. There was a boozy sweet sugary aroma. The taste had a very nice scotch like taste, a good hint of sweetness, nice warm and boozy. Good full flavor, nice sipping beer. Overall a very nice complete and well crafted scotch ale. (316 characters)

A - Warped Speed has a gorgeous rich mahogany color to it that's nice and clear and pours with a firm khaki head. The bubbles subside to a ring of foam and dot the nonic pint with specks of lace.

S - A beautiful bouquet of maltiness oozes from this beer with smooth unfermented sweetness. Caramel and toffee overlap notes of chocolate-covered espresso bean and a dusting of mocha while fruity yeast ester nuances of dried candied plum surface as the beer warms.

T - Like the aroma, this beer is malt forward and smooth as can be. Kettle caramelization imparts a lovely sweetness of caramel and toffee while including some slightly more roasted notes like mocha and traces of coffee.

M - Warped Speed is a medium bodied Scotch ale that pleasantly crosses the palate with smoothness and grace, gently finishing with a touch of smoky dryness and thinning alcohol warmth.

O - A malt-lover's dream, Warped Speed Scotch Ale manages, quite well in fact, to usher sweetness forward while remaining balanced and drinkable. Toffee and caramel get along well with the beer's coffee and chocolate roasted malt notes for an almost dessert-like quality to this smooth brew. (1,228 characters)

4.0 A: Faintly hazed (I think) deep plum/mahogany color. Two fingers of frothy/creamy beige head. Retention is pretty good and a short ring of lacing is left.

4.5 S: Tons of caramel with a good bit of toffee behind it. Sweet, like it should be. A little bit of toastiness. Raisiny fruitiness with sugary candied cherries. Very nice.

4.0 T: Again lots of caramel, toffee, and sweetness. This isn't cloying in the least though. It's sweet, but well balanced. Raisin, plum, and cherry fruitiness. Only mildly sugary in the taste. Toasty with the slightest touch of smoke. Again, very nice.

4.0 D: Supremely drinkable and a damn good scotch ale. I had the bourbon barrel version of this and it sucked, so I guess it was the barreling that was fucked up and not the base beer. (911 characters)

Pours a ruddy, caramely brown color. Style appropriate. Around a finger or more of head the color of the crema on a cup of coffee.

The aroma is nearly entirely butterscotch. I worry about diacety because of it. If you search hard then you will get breadcrusts and ghosts of raisins. But that butterscotch is too heavy; makes this beer mostly one-note.

No diacety-bomb, thankfully. In fact, it's one of the best tasting scotch ales I've ever had. Bready, rich malt flavors abound. The butterscotch is a supporting flavor, not the show-stealer. There's a bit of a hop flavor, which I never expect in the style, but it works in the sense of a slight, minty balancing. Some dark fruits on the midpalate before yielding to more bread. Really good stuff for the style.

The beer is medium-bodied, I suppose. I never really noticed the mouthfeel (which is oftentimes a good sign). Overall, this is a darn good example of the style. I don't love this style, to be honest, but I can certainly appreciate this beer. (1,053 characters)

Dark clotted blood color, foam collar for a head, medium body with light carbonation levels, smells of sweet malts (mostly caramel), dark fruits and also that hint of peat smoke that I wasn't able to find in the Louie's Reserve. Taste includes all these elements and some strong earthy hopping on top of a bowl of grape nuts cereal. Body is medium thick and slightly undercarbonated. It really does come across as a smaller Louie's Reserve, but with the inclusion of peatiness. (499 characters)

I loved the Louie's Reserve Scotch Ale so I had been meaning to try the "light version" so to speak. Lately I had been reading that not only was Warped Speed a great beer but the abv was a lot higher than I thought it would be. I know it isn't officially posted but I saw one thread that someone heard from the brewmaster himself that it was in the 7.3 range. A potentially great tasting 7.3 abv beer at $7.99 for a six pack? Sign me up!

Taste-Initially I got bread and malts with a lot less sweetness than the Louie's Reserve version. I saw someone else in their review mention a sourness. I would agree. Almost a sour kind of fruit taste. I noticed different tastes in the initial taste and then the aftertaste which made it fun to drink.

Mouthfeel-some carbonation. A little stickiness.

Overall-Very, very good. Right on par with the Brewer's reserve version of this beer and an excellent bargain for $7.99 a six pack. Maybe one of the best beers for your buck. (1,075 characters)

T - Malty, sweet, full, hints of raisin. Leaves an unpleasant aftertaste. I'll let it warm a bit, then try. (30 Min. later) Flavors have mellowed a bit. Less of the nasty aftertaste. Heavy malt, sweet at the front, sour at the end.

Not great, but not horrible. Not my style, but someone who likes lots of malt flavor would probably enjoy it.

I'll stick by my theory that Wisconsin is incapable of producing a good beer. (548 characters)

~ I'm not a big scotch ale fan but I have to admit this is a good beer. If you're interested in starting out and finishing with a good beer in this style category, this is the one with which you should go. (565 characters)

Pours a chocolate brown amber with a 1 finger head. Caramel, yeasty, banana, spicy and phenolic on the nose. Modest bitter bite on the tongue, more than I expected. Strong molasses, bready, caramel, toffee, with a spicy boozyness about it, and raisin, fig and faint banana esters. Medium to light body, chewy, boozy spice in the finish. Very good, characteristics don't seem to meld perfectly in my book, the reserve is bigger and seems to bring everything together a little better. (482 characters)

A: Clear, dark reddish-amber color with no head. No lacing remains on the glass.

S: Heavy toasted grain is centrally-positioned in the smell, with lesser caramel, estery fruit, and vanilla also present.

T: Begins off-dry, with caramel that is deep, dark, and dominant over mild acidity. Fruit qualities are dynamic in the middle, with hints of the esters from the smell as well as additional layers that stretch from dark cherry to bright and lively plum. The finish is earthy and mildly bitter, with a late whiff of carbonic acid causing other flavors to dissipate.

M: Medium viscosity, mostly creamy but also slightly acidic on the palate, with moderate carbonation.

D/O: This is a solid scotch ale that takes a traditional approach to the style. The flavors in the middle were nearly perfect, and overall it stayed appealing from start to finish. Pair with lighter braised meats, but don't look for this beer to be a reliable source of acidity in the pairing. (1,033 characters)

Thanks to Wade for picking this up for me in Wisconsin. Poured into my sam adams boston lager glass, the appearance of this beer is a brilliantly clear reddish brown with a nice creamy, tan, finger and a half head. Aroma is toffee and caramel up front with some slightly toasted, bready, biscuity, notes.

First thing i thought when i tasted this beer is that this is a solid, approachable, and fine example of a scotch ale. Initial caramel malt and slight honey sweetness, slightly peaty, with a nutty finish. As it warms the peat makes a stronger encore putting the scotch in this scotch ale. Hops are pretty well subdued but the earthiness of the bittering British hop varieties used in this beer is a little more than i like for this style but it could be the peat. Alcohol is slightly more detectable towards the end of the glass but by no means offensive.

Body is medium, almost medium-heavy. Carbonation is just about spot on in conjunction with the body. I thoroughly enjoyed this beer and wish i lived closer to Wisconsin so i could have access to it whenever i please. (1,079 characters)

Cold 12oz bottle pours into pint glass, red-brown in color with a thin chestnut head. Aroma is simultaneously fruity, roasty, and astringent. Initial fizz gives way to incredibly smooth, almost creamy mouthfeel with a mild, nutty flavor and en edge of grainy bitterness. Just a hint of sweetness -- the flavor of caramel with none of the cloying, syrupy stuff.

There's some caramel and butterscotch flavors here, but none of the diacetyl and buttery mouthfeel that I really want in a Scotch ale. Then again there's none of the unfortunately chalky malt flavor, either. Overall, it's relative mildness (read: blandness) and perfect level of carbonation makes it supremely drinkable and probably a fine session beer, but not a great beer. Pitty I only picked up one in a mixed 6-pack while traveling through Janesville, WI. (822 characters)

I had this on tap at The Shed in Spring Green, WI on Feb 26, 2011 and purchased 2 6 packs of bottles at the Piggly Wiggly in Dodgeville to bring home. This is my favorite destination beer. The full mouth feel is very satisfying with big malts. Some of the recent BA reviews make me think some bad (or badly mistreated) beer has been making the rounds because I have found this brew to be fully satisfying every time I have had it. Very drinkable any time of year. (463 characters)